The rise of a great power: starting with military industry

Conference room in the White House, United States.

Barack was holding a cabinet meeting to discuss Israel.

Barack was greatly relieved by his successful re-election. After all, if he could serve another term, he could spend a lot of money like crazy. After this term, he could be very relaxed.

By then, whether you write and publish books or give speeches everywhere, making tens of millions of dollars will be like a piece of cake.

Look at Clinton, for example.

After leaving office, Clinton did not choose to enjoy his old age, but transformed himself into a star in the global speech market. He could earn $5 for an ordinary speech, and some speeches could earn $10 or even $20. He could easily earn more than a million dollars a year from speaking events, and in some years, he could earn more than $ million from speeches alone.

Moreover, the books written by Clinton have always been very popular in the market.

Relying on speeches and writing, Clinton's annual income is no less than 2000 million US dollars. It can be said that he has both connections and eloquence.

Before becoming president, Clinton's assets were no more than a few million dollars. But now, the Clintons are no longer just the couple, but have developed into the Clinton family, a new political family in the United States with great influence in the United States.

Not everyone is like the Bush family. George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush made the Bush family a giant in the fields of oil, energy, military industry, etc., and they have accumulated countless wealth.

Barack's role model is Clinton.

In order to maintain his influence after leaving office, Barack anchored himself to the black community in the United States.

As long as he manages his job properly and becomes a representative of black Americans, he can maintain his huge influence even after he leaves office.

In this election, he was able to win re-election with an extremely narrow advantage because almost all black Americans voted for him.

In this position, the salary is actually not much and it is nothing.

But the interests involved are extremely staggering.

For example, under his leadership, a medical website was set up in the United States, and the person who received the order was his wife's classmate, and the order was worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

Even though this website has been criticized, all procedures are legal and compliant, and there is no problem at all.

And the annual maintenance service costs are also as high as hundreds of millions of dollars.

It is estimated that by the time he leaves office, the total investment in this site may be as high as $30 billion.

And the medical reform he introduced has brought profits to countless pharmaceutical companies, hospitals, and health insurance companies.

But this time, Israel's actions created trouble for Barack.

The suppression of the rebel militants in Yemen came as a great shock to the United States, which held several meetings for this purpose.

You know, the United States has invested huge amounts in Yemen.

The purpose is to force Saudi Arabia.

Unexpectedly, Saudi Arabia helped the Yemeni government suppress the rebellion so quickly, making the United States' early investment in Yemen go to waste.

According to intelligence obtained by the US intelligence system, the United States already knows that the mercenaries hired by Saudi Arabia played a decisive role in the encirclement and suppression of Yemeni rebel militants. It was these mercenaries who destroyed the stronghold of Yemeni rebel militants.

This also forced the United States to reassess the military strength of Saudi Arabia and the Arab coalition, and also to reassess the combat effectiveness of those mercenaries.

The United States is naturally no stranger to these mercenaries. After all, the two sides have been dealing with each other for more than 30 years. They can be regarded as old friends. The two sides have fought many times and know each other well.

Now Israel is going to take military action, which makes Barack very annoyed.

You know, the number of U.S. troops stationed in Israel has reached 3.1.

In an area as small as Israel, it would be easy for the US troops to be affected and the US to be dragged into it.

The United States finally withdrew its troops from Iraq. Even though the 'Baghdad moment' made it lose face, at least it no longer had to waste time in Iraq, which was a huge quagmire.

It was precisely because of the withdrawal of troops from the battlefields in Afghanistan and Iraq that he was able to carry out large-scale disarmament and cut military spending. A considerable number of soldiers were laid off, even some generals.

If Israel were to take military action now, once the United States is drawn in, it would probably be even more complicated than the Iraq War. After all, it would not just be about facing Jordan, Palestine, Syria and Lebanon, but the union of the entire Arab world.

But Barack knew that there was also Republican power behind this.

Ending the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq can be said to have damaged the interests of the military and caused great losses to the military-industrial complex. The end of the Iraq War led to Saddam taking away all the oil and gas fields, and the losses of American energy giants were very large.

These are the Republican Party’s base and supportive forces.

Barack doesn't care, because it's not him or the Democratic Party whose interests are harmed.

The battle between the donkey and the elephant is now becoming more and more intense.

The Republicans are also constantly making trouble for Barack. For example, this time, the Republicans can be seen.

But when it comes to Israel, Barack has to be cautious because the Jewish interests in the United States are too great.

The bigwigs behind the American media and finance are almost all Jewish.

The Jews are even an extremely important force in the US presidential election. There is even a saying in the United States that whoever can win the Jews can win the election.

The reason why Barack was able to win the election was not only because black people voted for him, but also because of the support of Jewish people.

Why did he agree to station 3.1 US troops in Israel? Wasn't it to gain the support of the Jews?

"According to our assessment, if Israel launches a military operation, the chance of success is definitely less than 30%!" Hagel, who is in charge of military work, said in a deep voice.

Hagel has no favorable impression of Israel.

He has more than once made clear his disgust for the pro-Israel lobby, which he believes is hijacking U.S. foreign policy.

He dared to break the taboos in Washington's political circles and outspokenly criticized the Israeli lobby. He once publicly said: "When the American Israel Public Affairs Committee knocks on the door with a pro-Israel letter, 80 or 90 senators will sign the letter. I never signed it because it is stupid. I am a senator from the United States, not a senator from Israel."

It is precisely because of this stance that Hagel was called "the most hostile defense minister to Israel" by pro-Israel politicians.

"The appointment of Hagel is a slap in the face to all Americans who care about Israel's security," said Brooks, executive director of the Jewish Republican Alliance.

Senate Minority Leader McConnell said the defense secretary candidate must "fully understand our close relationship with our Israeli ally, the threat posed by Iran and the importance of having a strong military," while questioning whether Hagel is "suitable for the position." Hagel is strongly opposed to Israel's military adventures, and his attitude is that the United States must hold Israel down to prevent the United States from being drawn into the vortex.

The United States is now fighting proxy wars in North America, Syria and Russia to avoid being involved personally. If it were to be dragged into a war between Israel and Arab countries, the United States would suffer heavy losses.

Barack frowned slightly. He didn't expect that the chances of winning would be so low.

Originally he thought the outcome should be fifty-fifty.

After all, Israel's military strength is still very strong. Its weapons and equipment are all active equipment of the US military, and its soldiers are also well-trained.

He did not doubt that Hagel would deceive him because Hagel was his man, and that was why he promoted Hagel against all odds.

"Mr. President, our new treasury bonds are about to be issued." Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew had to remind him.

Jacob Lew is 58 years old and has extensive experience. From 1998 to 2001, he served as Director of the White House Office of Management and Budget in the Clinton administration, and kept the US federal finances in surplus for many years. From 2001 to 2006, he served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of New York University, and later served as Chief Operating Officer of Citigroup's Global Wealth Management Department and Chief Operating Officer of Alternative Investment Department.

In January 2009, he began serving as the Under Secretary of State for Management and Resources. In July 1, he became the new Director of the White House Office of Management and Budget.

He believes in Judaism and is not Barack's man. He is actually a friend of the Clinton family.

He was able to become the Secretary of the Treasury with the strong support of the Clinton family.

Barack's face sank slightly.

The alliance with Israel is not just a military issue, nor is it just a political issue, but also an economic issue.

Since his first term, although he has tried to stimulate the economy, launched a series of economic stimulus plans, and carried out many reforms, the U.S. federal finances have not had a surplus, but have been in deficit every year.

This naturally requires issuing national bonds and living on debt.

However, due to external factors, U.S. Treasury bonds are not so easy to sell. Even though the United States packages U.S. Treasury bonds as high-quality financial products, the fact is that U.S. Treasury bonds are not easy to sell.

Barack compromised with the Jews again and again, not only because he needed the support of the Jews, but also because of economic considerations.

Israel is the second largest creditor of the United States, with a scale of US$3895 billion in U.S. debt held by it, second only to Japan.

The largest creditor of the United States is Japan, which holds US$1.86 trillion in U.S. debt.

Looking at the countries holding U.S. debt alone, Israel is far behind Japan.

But if we look at the U.S. debt held by Jews, the scale exceeds that of the Japanese.

Now the Barack government is going to issue another batch of U.S. debts, and Jews will be extremely important buyers. If Israel is offended, this batch of U.S. debts may not be sold, and even cause a chain reaction in the U.S. debt market.

This consequence is definitely something the Barack government cannot afford.

If this situation occurs, Barack may face the risk of impeachment.

The outside world only sees that the United States can live easily by starting up its nuclear dollar printing press and issuing dollars, but they don't know that the United States also has its own difficulties. Coupled with this batch of issued treasury bonds, the total size of the U.S. national debt will reach an astonishing 17.2 trillion U.S. dollars. The interest on the treasury bonds that the United States has to pay every year is quite astonishing.

Some people think that the United States only needs to issue debts and can simply default on its debts when it cannot pay them back.

But you have to know that the total amount of U.S. debt held by foreign countries is 4.5 trillion U.S. dollars, and the major banks, financial institutions, and individuals in the United States hold 12.7 trillion U.S. dollars in U.S. debt. If the United States were to default on its national debt, the one who would suffer the greatest loss would actually be the United States itself.

The United States is now borrowing new debt to repay old debt, and then seeing if it can cut spending.

Every issue of U.S. Treasury bonds seems to be sold, but in fact the United States does the work in advance.

For example, in recent years, the United States has been pressuring Japan to buy U.S. debt unwillingly, and then when the debts are due, forcing the Japanese to sell them. The Federal Reserve and others then take over Japan's U.S. debt at a relatively low price, so that Japan can pay less interest.

But no matter what Japan does, the amount of U.S. debt it can purchase is limited and it cannot grow indefinitely.

Moreover, the Americans' actions are not without cost. The cost is that anti-American voices in Japan are growing day by day. From the official to the private sector, the voices on East Asian economic integration are getting louder and louder, and the support rate is constantly reaching new highs.

Even among the Japanese people, when American soldiers go to bars to drink, no Japanese will offer their seats to them voluntarily.

The Japanese are becoming increasingly unwilling to cooperate with the United States, and this centrifugal force is increasing.

If the Americans hadn't been stirring up conflicts and alienating countries from time to time, the Japanese might have already rebelled.

Barack sighed in his heart. The good days were just a few days away and he had to worry about these things again.

This seat is not comfortable!

Barack asked Secretary of State John Kerry to go to Israel in person to communicate with Israel and let Israeli politicians understand that this is not a good time.

And he personally contacted important Jewish figures in the United States to let them know that if Israel started a war at this time, it would lose more than it would win.

These important Jewish figures in the United States not only have enormous power in the United States, but also have a significant influence on Israel.

Even among the Jewish community in Europe, the influence is extremely astonishing.

At the same time, the relevant intelligence also attracted the attention of Jordan, Palestine, Syria and Lebanon. The leaders of both sides had frequent exchanges and even held joint meetings.

When facing Israel, the four countries are allies, their attitudes are clear, and their interests are consistent, because they are the only four countries bordering Israel. When facing Israel, everyone understands the principle of "the lips and the teeth are cold".

After years of fighting, too much hatred has accumulated between them.

The four countries are also the first line of defense against Israel.

Arab countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, Egypt, etc. are the second line.

Unless the first line is in danger, the second line is very stable and provides more support from behind.

Assad even went to Saudi Arabia to meet with the king, hoping to get greater support from Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia helped Yemen to eliminate rebel militants and quell the war, which further enhanced Saudi Arabia's prestige in the Arab world.

In terms of per capita wealth, Saudi Arabia cannot compare with countries like Kuwait, but countries like Kuwait are small and have small populations. Saudi Arabia is indeed the largest country in the Arab world, with a population of nearly 40 million.

And Saudi Arabia has the strongest military force in the Arab world! (End of this chapter)